 Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar, was one of old time radio's most successful and long lasting radio detective series. Debuting in 1948, Johnny Dollar ran until September 30, 1962, when it joined Suspense as the last two dramas of the radio era.
The character of Johnny Dollar evolved through the years although the basic premise of the program remained the same through the entire run. Dollar was a freelance insurance investigator. The insurance companies would hire the investigator to verify various elements of a claim. When there was evidence of a fraudulent claim, the insurance company did not have to pay it, putting the investigator in line for a large bonus.
The episodes of Johnny Dollar revolved around the reading of the investigator's expense reports, often with Dollar's "creative" entries. Over the years, a number of actors took on the role of Johnny Dollar; this collection is a sample of each of their work.
Dick Powell played the role in the audition episode, titled Yours Truly, Lloyd London, but withdrew from the project because of other commitments.
LEADING ROLE OF
'JOHNNY DOLLAR' PLAYED BY VARIOUS ACTORS OVER 14-YEAR RUN: |
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Dick Powell
Starred in 1948
One audition episode only
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Charles Russell
Starred in 1949 - 1950
Episodes #1-34
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Edmond O'Brien
Starred in 1950 - 1952
Episodes #35 - 139
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John Lund
Starred in 1952 - 1954
Episodes #140 - 232
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Gerald Mohr
Starred in 1955
One Audition Episode
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Bob Bailey
Starred in 1955 - 1960
Episodes #233 - 716
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Bob Readick
Starred in 1960 - 1961
Episodes #717 - 744
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Mandel Kramer
Starred in 1961 - 1962
Episodes #745 - 811
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Movie actor Charles Russell was the first Johnny Dollar during the 1949-1950 season. During the first season of YTJD actor Russell was going through a divorce from starlet Nancy Guild, and the insurance investigator role was given to Edmund O'Brien. With O'Brien at the microphone, Johnny Dollar began to lean towards a tough-guy, almost hard-boiled persona. When O'Brien's movie career began to reignite in 1952, another movie tough-guy, John Lund assumed the role until 1954, when the series ended, temporarily.
Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar was too hot of a property to leave alone for long, and the radio network turned the reins of the show over to veteran producer Jack Johnstone. Having worked extensively in serial dramas like Buck Rogers and The Adventures of Superman, Johnstone began reformatting Johnny Dollar into a daily 15 minute program with week long story arcs. With nearly 75 minutes of storytelling time, the writers had a better opportunity to develop plots and characters. Veteran leading man Gerald Mohr played in the new audition show. Mohr had a powerful leading-man voice, but was involved with filming the Foreign Intrigue television series in Stockholm.
The role ultimately went to Bob Bailey. Bailey had just completed work on another radio detective role, Let George Do It, and was a natural for the "man with the action packed expense account". Bailey's acting and the extended 15 minutes 5 days a week (75 minute format) worked extremely well for the listening tastes of OTR fans, but the network was unable to find a sponsor, and the experiment came to an end after 13 months. Again, YTJD was too successful to set aside, and Bob Baileystayed with the role until 1960 when the network moved radio production to New York as a cost cutting measure.
Broadway veteran Bob Readick assumed the role for the 1960-1961 season. For the 1961-62 season, the part went to Mandel Kramer. Both actors were part of CBS' company of stock players. Readick appeared in several episodes of Suspense as well as The FBI In Peace And War. Kramer had a varied career, and was played several roles on Counterspy. He would later become the last leading actor of the radio era. Readick's portrayal went back to the original Johnny Dollar character, while Kramer, who put his own low-key spin on the role, is (in many listeners' minds) the second best Johnny Dollar after Bailey.
This compilation is a sampling of the actors who played Johnny Dollar over the years, see also the extensive collection of Yours Truly Johnny Dollar.
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